Multiculturalism - How can society deal with it?

Standpunt | Jaargang 2017

Multiculturalism - How can society deal with it

Klasse Menswetenschappen

Can we create new national stories that would enable all citizens,
regardless of their background, to feel they belong to the national
community? What implications does that have for schools, specifically
for religious education? How can crime and terrorism be confronted?

These were among the questions raised by the Thinkers’ Programme of the
Academy. Recent decades have been characterised by a growing
polarisation in Europe on questions of immigration and integration, and
by public anxiety about infringements on the established way of life.
When defining their stances, majorities tend to rely more on their own
fears than on familiarity with the experiences and values of the
minorities in their midst. Two ‘Thinkers in residence’, invited by the
KVAB, initiated a reflection on the subject of multiculturalism as a
mode of political accommodation of the minorities formed by immigration
to Belgium (and Flanders in particular) and its implications for
majority identities. The general theme of ‘Multiple identities in
conflict and/or in harmony’, addressed by the Thinkers, was approached
on two levels: (political) theory and the problems of practice.

Each of the Thinkers presented their conclusions to various experts and
stakeholders at the final symposium of June 23, 2017. Their
recommendations were formulated in a final position paper, contained in
this report.